_Hepatitis _
By: osiban
Introduction For my final paper, I will do research on Hepatitis C for
recognition targeted towards technical publications as JAMA, New England
Journal Of Medicine etcHepatitis C (HCV) causes inflammation of the liver
and can cause liver damage leading to cirrhosis. Occasionally, liver cancer
may develop. First called non-A non-B hepatitis, hepatitis C was discovered
in the early 1970’s, but it wasn’t until 1989 that testing for specific
antibodies to the virus began. Each year, 15,000 Americans contract hepatitis
C, which is a more frequent cause of chronic liver disease than hepatitis B.
While at least half of the patients with acute hepatitis C become chronic,
some estimate the rate as high as 80%
Who is at risk? People at risk
include anyone who has had a blood transfusion, health care workers (which we
intend to be in the near future), I.V.(intravenous)drug users, and
hemodialysis patients
How is HCV transmitted? The virus is found in blood,
semen, vaginal secretions and saliva. It may be transmitted via transfusion,
sex, sharing razors, needles, toothbrushes, nail files or even a barber’s
scissors. All people with HCV are potentially infectious. As many as 3.5
million people are believed to be carriers which means that they have the
virus in their system and whether they have symptoms or not, they can infect
others. Unlike hepatitis A and B, previous infection does not produce
immunity
Is there a vaccine for hepatitis C? There is no vaccine for HCV
and vaccines of other forms of hepatitis do not provide immunity against
hepatitis C
What are the symptoms? Most people infected with HCV do not
have symptoms. Even if they have normal liver function tests, they are called
carriers. The virus is in their blood and can cause damage to the liver.
Carriers can transmit the virus to others. If symptoms are present, they are
usually mild and flu-like: nausea, fatigue, loss of appetite, fever,
headaches, and abdominal pain. Most do not have jaundice (yellowing of the
eyes), however, it can occur along with dark urine
Is there a cure? Few
people are able to clear the virus from their blood, which is necessary, to be
completely recovered. Over half of the cases reported each year become
chronic, which means liver enzyme levels remain elevated for at least six
months after the acute infection
What does chronic hepatitis mean? Chronic
HCV indicates a gradual progression of the disease over 10-40 years. A liver
biopsy can identify the type and degree and is the best method of determining
the severity of the disease. Patients with Chronic HCV have increased risk
for developing primary liver cancer. It is believed that 20% of these
patients will develop cirrhosis of the liver(damage to the liver), and
another 25% will develop liver failure after which death may occur
Is there
a treatment? Treatment for chronic hepatitis C is limited. Currently, the
only FDA approved treatment is interferon alpha-2b. The treatment must be
given by injection and it may have a number of side-effects. Interferon may
also interfere with the production of white blood cells and platelets by
depressing the bone marrow
_Bibliography _
Murray, P.R. Medical microbiology Second Edition;1994 “Consensus on HCV
testing and treatment”. Secaucus, NJ: Advanced Therapeutics Communications.
1992 12p
This publication is a bulletin from the National Hepatitis
Detection and Treatment Program (NHDTP), an educational program for
physicians funded by three medical manufacturing companies. Included are
tables or charts summarizing the reported data; I will use this to obtain
Statistics on Hepatitis
Maddrey, W.C. “Chronic Hepatitis”. Disease-a-Month,
Masters in Medicine
39(2): 53-126. February 1993
This monograph presents
an overview of chronic hepatitis. Topics include a classification of chronic
hepatitis based on histologic manifestations: I will use this to understand
further the causes of the major disorder, its management and treatment.
Word Count: 519
